Not Yet Yours

Chapter 28

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Liam

W ell, that went better than I had thought it was going to. I stopped by the hotel and retrieved the paperwork and then I went directly to the hardware store that was the supplier of the toilets. I didn’t mess about, I went in and asked directly for the manager. He came out and I explained the situation with the toilets to him and how they were the wrong ones that had been delivered to the site. He told me he had been speaking to someone on the telephone about this and that the mistake wasn’t at his end, so there was nothing he could do about it.

I asked him to confirm the item number for the toilet model we got sent which he did. I then asked him to look at our order form where the order number was clearly different. He had turned white and immediately started groveling and apologizing. I wasn’t there to have my ass kissed so I told him it was ok, mistakes happen, but that he needed to make it right. He asked me to wait a moment and he disappeared and came back after five or ten minutes. He handed me some paperwork and went through it with me.

It basically confirmed that the correct items had now been ordered and that he had put them through on next day delivery at no extra cost to us. The delivery guys would collect the incorrect models while they were there, and the best part of it all was the receipt to show that the card we bought the toilets on had been refunded fifty percent of the price, something the manager said was an apology which he hoped I would accept.

Although I was annoyed that he wouldn’t listen on the telephone and it had taken me to go down there to fix a thing that should have been able to be fixed over the phone, I have to say I was impressed by the way the manager made things right and I told him as much and that I accepted his apology, and I reassured him that it hadn’t made me not want to shop there anymore.

I did tell him though, that going forward, if we had a problem or if one of my team called him, I would like to think he would solve it without me having to come down here and see him personally. He assured me that going forward that would be the case and to tell anyone who was contacting the store on my behalf to ask for him personally. I thanked him and left the store happier than I expected to be and a lot happier than I had been on the way in.

I sit in my car in the parking lot and call the project manager. I explained all that happened and told him that there would be a new delivery tomorrow and that the incorrect models would be collected then too. I also tell him that if he has any issues whatsoever to call the store and ask for the manager directly.

Once I finish the call, I’m tempted to switch my cell phone off so that I can have the rest of the day away from work. After all, I was meant to be working from home today, but I wasn’t. Although the calls are annoying, everyone knows to only call me when they have exhausted all other possibilities and I have never once had a call from any of my staff about something that they could have fixed without me. For that reason, I leave my cell phone switched on and put it on the passenger seat beside me. I put my car into drive and pull out of my parking spot. I drive across the parking lot, go into the main flow of traffic, and head back toward home.

I can’t wait to get there and tell Harriet what her surprise is. I know she will love it. I certainly love the surprise she gave me. I know she thinks it’s not much because it wasn’t expensive, but just because it doesn’t have a million-dollar price tag doesn’t mean it is worthless. To me, the fact that she spent the time to make it means more than any amount of money she could have spent on something. And how could I not love the message behind it? It’s the very embodiment of true and eternal love and the fact that Harriet chose to make that for me is no coincidence. It’s her way of telling me that she sees us as the real deal.

Once I’ve shown Harriet her surprise, I’m going to spend the rest of the day showing her how much I love mine. I’m going to start by stripping her and kissing every inch of her body. I will then lay her down and lick her pussy until she comes and then I will claim her with my cock and make her come again. When she has had multiple orgasms and is sated, I will run her a nice hot bath with some of that rose-scented oil she likes in it. While she’s soaking in the bathtub, I’ll order her favorite food and then we’ll eat it in front of the TV watching a series or movie of her choice. I will end the night by giving her a full body massage and I might even make her come again. I think that will show her how much I love my surprise gift. But if it doesn’t, I have no issues with spoiling Harriet every day that way until she gets the message loud and clear.

I’m on my street now and I drive to my building’s parking lot and turn into it. I drive to my parking spot and park my car. I grab my cell phone from the passenger seat beside me, and I get out of my car and go to the main apartment building’s door which I unlock and then I head up the stairs to my apartment. I go inside, and I’m surprised to see that the living room is empty. I expected Harriet to be sitting curled up on the sofa with my laptop. Ah but of course, it needed charging, and the stupid wire doesn’t reach a single plug socket from the couch so she would have had to sit at the dining table or the breakfast bar. For that reason, she’s probably decided to just use it in my home office. Or she’s snuggled up in bed under the covers with it. That would save time if she’s already in bed. I can thank her for the sculpture first and show her the surprise I have for her later.

“Harriet?” I call out. “I’m back.”

There’s no answer and I move toward the hallway on the other side of the living room. I move along it and check the bedroom. It’s empty. The bathroom door is ajar, and I can see that it too is empty so she must be in my office. I go to the end of the hallway and push the door open.

“Hi,” I say and then realize I’m greeting an empty room.

Where the hell is she?

I think for a moment and the only conclusion I can come with is that she’s obviously popped out for something and there’s no reason she would have thought to call or text me to let me know because she wouldn’t know I would be back yet. I’ll give her half an hour to see if she’s popped out to grab something for lunch and if she’s not back by then, I’ll send her a message letting her know I’m done and see where she’s gotten to.

As I’m thinking this, I’m looking at my desk. Something is wrong and I can’t put my finger on what it is but there’s something on my desk that isn’t normally there. It’s nothing obvious like a used coffee cup or something of Harriet’s. I keep looking and then it hits me. It’s my paperweight. It’s been moved. It always sits at the back right of my desk and now it’s sitting there bang in the center of it. I frown. Why the hell would Harriet move that and why would she move it into such an inconvenient place?

Oh, I know. She must have left me a note letting me know where she is, and she’s pinned it beneath the paperweight because she knows I’ll know it’s been moved, and that way she knows I will see her note. Clever.

I move forward and go around my desk to sit down. I might as well do a bit more work after I’ve read the note until Harriet comes back. I drop into my seat and put my cell phone, which is still in my hand from getting out of the car, down on the desk beside my laptop, and I move the paperweight back to its correct spot and pick up the note from Harriet.

Except it’s not a note from Harriet. It’s not a note at all. No. It’s my worst nightmare personified, and I’m not even being a bit dramatic there. Short of death, it’s definitely the worst thing that could happen, because it means I will lose Harriet. I have already lost her if she’s seen this, and she obviously has.

Fuck. How has this happened?

Harriet has found my marriage certificate.

Fuck. Fuck. Fucking fuck.

I didn’t even know the offending marriage certificate was in here. I should probably be mad that she’s been snooping about because I don’t remember seeing this thing in forever, certainly well over a decade, so she must have had a good look through everything to unearth it. The thing is though, I’m not mad. I just feel sick to the bottom of my stomach.

There is a definite message here without there having to be a handwritten note. Harriet found the marriage certificate and left because she thinks I’m married. Well, I mean technically she’s right. I am married, but it’s not what Harriet clearly thinks it is. It’s not like I’m juggling a wife and Harriet at the same time. I sigh and rub my hands over my face.

“Fuck,” I shout. “Fucking fuck.”

It seems that my vocabulary gets severely limited when I get dumped by the love of my life.

I get why Harriet left. Of course, I do. If I had found something like this at her place, I think I might have left too. I would have felt sick to my stomach, and I can imagine Harriet feeling the same and probably feeling it even more so than I would have because of her issues with commitment and trust.

God, this must have hit her like I don’t know what. Despite that though, Harriet knows me. She knows how much I love her, and she knows I would never lie to her or cheat on her because she knows that I would never intentionally do anything that I thought would hurt her. Or at least I thought she knew all of that. I wish she would have stayed to talk about it with me. I wish she could have given me the benefit of the doubt and let me explain this to her. I wish she could have trusted me that much.

I’m not just going to sit here and wallow in wishes and what ifs though. I don’t have time for that shit. I have to find Harriet and explain everything to her and throw myself at her mercy and hopefully have her forgive me enough that I can work on winning her back. I hope that’s still on the table once I explain.

I reach for my cell phone, but my hand is shaking so much I can’t quite grasp it. I pull my hand back. I can’t call Harriet like this. I won’t be able to get my words out properly and I think I will only have one chance to explain this to her if that. I don’t want to mess it up.

I take a couple of deep breaths and although it’s fair to say I don’t feel any better, my hands are shaking a bit less, and this time, I’m able to pick my cell phone up. Before I can do more than that, it starts to ring, and I see Cullen’s name on the screen.

That makes sense. Harriet would have gone to Max because she would have been upset and after hearing why she was upset I’m sure Max would have got in touch with Cullen to find out what the hell was going on. And of course, Cullen is now calling me to try and find out the answer to that question, because he is as in the dark as Harriet and Max are about all of this.

I tap on my cell phone’s screen and take Cullen’s call.

“Hey,” Cullen says. “Kind of a weird one, but…”

I don’t let him get any further. I’m not even going to attempt to explain this to Harriet over the phone via a third party. She deserves way better than that.

“I’m on my way over now,” I say, interrupting Cullen. “Don’t let Harriet leave.”

I pull my cell phone from my face and end the call, having said everything that needs to be said until I’m sitting there, face to face with Harriet again. I get up and run from my home office, down the hallway, through the living room, and out of my apartment, stopping only long enough to get my keys out of my pocket so that I can lock my apartment door behind me.

I run down the stairs, taking them two at a time, and then I burst out of the main front door of the building and run around to the parking spot where I jump into my car, start the engine, and leave the parking lot. I’m pleased that the roads are fairly quiet and so I put my foot down. Cullen’s place is only a couple of blocks away and I make it there in record time. I get parked easily enough and I dash from the car to the front door of the building. I buzz Cullen’s buzzer and the door pings as it unlocks.

I pull it right open and step inside. I take a deep breath as I head for Cullen’s apartment. This is it. This is going to be one of the most important conversations I have ever had in my life and the direction the rest of my life will take is all down to how this one conversation pans out.

I reach the door to Cullen’s apartment and send up a silent prayer; if nothing else in my life ever goes right again, please let this be the one thing that does.

With that thought fresh in my mind, I open the door and step into Cullen’s apartment.